Mill Valley speeding stop leads to marijuana seizure, two arrests

Two Santa Rosa men were arraigned on drug charges Friday in connection with a Mill Valley traffic stop that yielded more than two pounds of marijuana, authorities said.

Jesus Antonio Amador, 23, and Jose Francisco Portillo, 42, of Santa Rosa are charged with transportation of marijuana, said Deputy District Attorney Sean Kensinger. They pleaded not guilty and remain in custody at the Marin County Jail.

The incident occurred Wednesday night after the California Highway Patrol clocked a car traveling at 83 mph on southbound Highway 101 south of Highway 131, said CHP Officer Patrick Roth.

The CHP stopped the car at the Seminary Drive exit and identified Portillo as the driver and Amador as his passenger. Police determined that Portillo was driving without a license.

Police then searched the car and found 2.5 pounds of marijuana in the trunk. When police placed both suspects in a patrol car, they were recorded conspiring to "keep their stories straight" and say the pot wasn't theirs and that it was placed in the trunk without their knowledge, Roth said.

The marijuana transportation charge carries a potential prison sentence of up to four years. Both suspects are also being detained on no-bail federal immigration holds pending further hearings.

Amador's lawyer, Roy Miller of Santa Rosa, declined to comment Friday because he has not received all of the alleged evidence.

"He has a family that's very supportive of him," Miller said. "They're surprised about the situation down there and they're hoping to get him out of custody as soon as possible."

Miller also represented Amador after in incident in July, when he was one of two men arrested after an argument and shooting at the El Puente Mexican Restaurant in Santa Rosa. Miller said police arrested "everyone who couldn't run fast enough," and that Amador eventually pleaded to disturbing the peace.

Miller said he also represented Amador on a charge of drug possession for sale after a home invasion robbery in June. Miller said Amador was actually sitting in a car outside the home when he was pistol-whipped, bound with duct tape and dragged into the home, then erroneously arrested when police arrived and found a large quantity pot in the house.

The case against Amador was dismissed, he said.

Portillo is being represented by the Marin County Public Defender's Office.